IU Softball Set to Open 2019 Season in Boca Raton

Friday, February 8

Boca Raton, Fla.

9:00 AM

Indiana University

Virginia

IU Softball Set to Open 2019 Season in Boca Raton

2/7/2019 10:37:00 AM | Softball

Live Radio Live Stats Watch (Saturday vs. FAU)Indiana Game Notes (PDF)

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The 2019 Indiana Softball season officially gets underway this weekend as the Hoosiers travel to Boca Raton, Fla. to play in the FAU First Pitch Classic. Indiana enters year two under the guidance of head coach Shonda Stanton.

IU will face off against five teams in the Sunshine State - Virginia, Bethune-Cookman, St. John's, Florida Atlantic and No. 6 Georgia. Bethune-Cookman and Georgia were both NCAA Tournament teams last season, with the Bulldogs advancing to the Women's College World Series.

Live stats and a radio broadcast for all games will also be available on IUHoosiers.com. Connor Hines will be providing play-by-play on the radio broadcast. In addition, a live stream of Saturday's game against FAU will also be available.

CHECKING OUT THE COMPETITION
Virginia: The Hoos went 12-41 last season with a 3-21 ACC mark. Virginia is led by third year head coach Joanna Hardin who leads a team mostly comprised of underclassmen with 11 freshmen and seven sophomores on the roster. Included in that sophomore class are Hayley Busby and Savana Avilla, who played high school softball with Indiana sophomore Maddie Westmoreland at Sandra Day O'Connor in Arizona. The biggest returning bat from last season is Erika Osherow, who hit .330 with 35 hits and 20 runs in 2018. In the circle, Virginia picked up grad transfer Allyson Frei who had a 2.53 ERA with 141 strikeouts for Boston College last season. The all-time series record between IU and Virginia is split at 1-1 with the last meeting resulting in a 5-2 Indiana win in 2001.

Bethune-Cookman: The Wildcats went 31-26 last season, won the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title and earned a trip to NCAA Regionals in Gainesville, Fla. Bethune-Cookman returns shortstop Jacki Smith, who was a All-MEAC First Team pick last year after batting .340 with 54 hits. Second baseman Brianna Sanders was a Second Team honoree last season. In the circle, Alexis Bermudez was named the MEAC Preseason Pitcher of the Year on the heels of a freshman campaign that saw her collect a 3.32 ERA with 66 strikeouts on her way to being named MEAC Rookie of the Year. IU leads the all-time series, 1-0, with the only meeting coming in 2004.

St. John's: Indiana's third opponent of the weekend is a St. John's team that went 28-27 last season with a 12-6 BIG EAST mark. The Red Storm were picked to finish third in the preseason conference poll. St. John's returns a pair of First Team All-Conference honorees in reigning BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Gretchen Bowie and Kaitlin Mattera. In the circle, Madison Morris carried the most innings last year, collecting a 4.26 ERA with 135 strikeouts in 146.1 IP. The Red Storm are under the guidance of first year head coach Bob Guerriero, who was promoted in January after previously serving as the interim as well as being a member of the staff for six seasons. Saturday's game will be the first ever meeting between the two teams.

Florida Atlantic: The tournament hosts are the reigning Conference USA Regular Season champions and were picked to finish second in the 2019 preseason poll. The Owls went 30-26 last season with a 15-8 C-USA record. Seniors Madisyn Palmer and Mia Olson were both named to the Preseason All-Conference team. Last season, Palmer stole a school-record 48 bases and finished fourth in the nation in stolen bases per game. Olson comes into the year with a career 2.64 ERA with 110 strikeouts. IU and FAU have just played once before, a 4-0 Indiana win in 1997.

Georgia: The final game of the weekend sees the Hoosiers face off against No. 6 Georgia, who is coming off a 2018 appearance in the Women's College World Series. The Bulldogs finished last season with a 48-13 record, including a 16-8 SEC mark. Georgia was picked to finish second in the 2019 Preseason SEC rankings while senior shortstop Alyssa DiCarlo was named to the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 50 watch list. DiCarlo bat .400 a season ago with 72 hits, 55 runs and 21 home runs. The Bulldog pitching staff will see the return of Kylie Bass (2.00 ERA, 15-3) and Mary Wilson Avant (2.26 ERA, 12-5). Georgia has taken all three previous meetings against Indiana, including a pair of victories in 2015.

RECAPPING 2018
In head coach Shonda Stanton's first year at the helm of the program, the Hoosiers put together a remarkable turnaround midway through the season. After starting the year 4-19, the Hoosiers flipped the script in Big Ten play as IU swept five conference foes (Ohio State, Michigan State, Penn State, Maryland and Purdue) on the way to 17-6 mark and a third-place finish. The Hoosiers earned their best finish since 2011 and tied with 2011 for the most conference wins since 1994. Indiana defeated Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals before eventually falling to Minnesota in the semis.

For their efforts in conference action, IU earned the most First and Second Team All-Big Ten honors since the Second Team was added in 2000. Tara Trainer and Maddie Westmoreland were named to the First Team while Rebecca Blitz and Gabbi Jenkins earned Second Team honors. In addition, Westmoreland and Taylor Lambert were named to the All-Freshman Team while Blitz was named to the Defensive squad.

RETURNING IN 2019
The Hoosiers return seven starters from last year's roster:
- Outfielders Gabbi Jenkins (.369, 66 hits, 39 runs, 26 SB in 2018) and Taylor Lambert (.255, 26 hits, 20 runs, 4 HR).

- Infielders Katie Lacefield (.253, 37 hits, 19 RBI) and Sarah Galovich (.258, 32 hits, 18 runs, 5 HR).

- Pitcher Tara Trainer leads the way in the circle after coming off career numbers a season ago (2.64 ERA, 216 K, 198.2 IP).

- Catcher/Designated Players Bella Norton (.207, 19 hits, 16 RBI) and Maddie Westmoreland (.306, 48 hits, 52 RBI, 10 HR).

• IU brings back five of the top six hitters from last season in terms of average, led by Jenkins. Jenkins is the leading returner from last season in stolen bases as the Hoosiers swiped 112 as a team last year, the second-most in program history and the most since 1987.

• Westmoreland is the current team leader in career home runs (10) and RBI. Her 52 RBI last season were the second-most ever in a single year in IU history.
• Joining Trainer in the circle are veterans Emily Goodin (2.24 ERA, 7-5, 109.1 IP in 2018) and Josie Wood (5.60, 40.0 IP).

• Trainer currently sits at fourth all-time in program history with 572 strikeouts:
1. Amy Unterbrink (1983-86) 1089
2. Gina Ugo (1993-96) 664
3. Megan Roark (2003-06) 577
4. Tara Trainer (2016-pr.) 572

NEW TO THE HOOSIERS
Indiana has nine newcomers to the team, including a pair of transfers and seven freshmen:
• Sophomore shortstop Grayson Radcliffe joins Indiana from Marshall, the previous stop of head coach Shonda Stanton, Radcliffe started 53 games at short for the Herd, collecting 30 hits, 15 RBI and 16 runs.

• Utility player Camryn Woodall joins Indiana from Utah after spending her freshman season with the Utes, playing 14 games. Woodall's younger sister Caraline was part of this year's signing class and will join the Hoosiers next fall.

• The freshmen class includes pitchers Natalie Foor and Taylor Askland, outfielder Tete Hart and utility players Hope Grange, Paige Chitwood, Brittany Ford and Juvia Davis.

STAFF UPDATES
From a staff perspective, the Hoosiers have a few updates from last season:
• Kendall Fearn and Chanda Bell have both been promoted to associate coaches.

• Longtime student manager Jake Combs has been named the team's volunteer assistant coach. Combs served as the manager all four seasons of his undergrad.

• Former Oregon standout and 2018 NCAA Catcher of the Year Gwen Svekis joined the Hoosiers as a graduate student manager, joining Morgan Zerkle at the position.

WHAT'S AHEAD IN 2019
The Hoosiers have 56 games on tap in 2019, including 17 to be played at Andy Mohr Field. Indiana will play 17 games against 2018 NCAA Tournament participants and nine games against teams who finished the season ranked or receiving votes in the final USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll of the year. In addition, Indiana will play 14 games against teams who finished in the top 50 of the 2018 NCAA RPI. The first Coaches Poll of the year saw seven opponents either ranked or receiving votes.

The Hoosiers open the season with 19 straight games and 25 of the first 26 away from Bloomington. After the FAU First Pitch Classic, IU will head to Duke for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. From there, Indiana travels to Mercer for the Black & Orange Challenge followed by a visit to LSU for the Purple & Gold Challenge. Indiana will open home play at Andy Mohr Field against in-state foe Butler on March 5. The Hoosiers return to the road that weekend to play in the USF-Clearwater Parks and Recreation Showcase Tournament before staying in the Sunshine State for a Tuesday night doubleheader against Florida Gulf Coast on March 12. IU's final tournament weekend features the annual Hoosier Classic March 15-17 at Andy Mohr Field. The final non-conference game of the season is a March 26 visit to Louisville. Road Big Ten battles include Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin and Penn State. Home conference contests feature Michigan State, Purdue, Maryland and Rutgers.

INDIANA TO HOST 2019 BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
For the first time, the Hoosiers will play host to the Big Ten Tournament at Andy Mohr Field on May 9-11. Play in the tournament begins on Thursday with four games scheduled, Friday will also feature four games. Competition will conclude on Saturday with the two semifinal games followed by the championship game.